Most students attend college to build a successful life and would not knowingly participate in activities that could damage their chances of achieving that life.

However, there are seven activities (I call them The 7 Deadly Sins) that students on college campuses across the country participate in each and every day that can get them kicked out of school, admitted to an emergency room, locked up in jail, or hauled off to the morgue.

Many of these students have no clue about the consequences of participating in The 7 Deadly Sins and they unintentionally begin to lay a foundation for an infinitely more difficult path to success. Taking part in one of these activities is not only illegal, but also is dangerous.

What are the 7 Deadly Sins?

1. Sharing your prescription medication with someone else.Example: Sharing your Ritalin or Adderall with a roommate or best friend to help them study.

2. Selling your prescription medication to someone else.Example: You need a little extra cash, so you decide to sell a few of your own Lortab that you never used when you got your wisdom teeth removed.

3. Using someone else’s prescription medication.Example: You use some of your friend’s Adderall to help cram for an exam.

4. Buying someone else’s prescription medication.Example: You buy some Xanax from someone on campus because you are stressed about final exams.

5. Borrowing someone else’s prescription medication.Example: You are out of your Ritalin and your doctor won’t give you a new prescription until you see him in the office, so you borrow one from your roommate with the expectation that you will pay them back later.

6. Stealing someone else’s prescription medication.Example: You steal oxycodone from the bathroom cabinet in a stranger’s house during a party you were invited to attend with some friends.

7. Misusing any prescription and/or over-the-counter medication.Example: You take Norco, Xanax, or virtually any controlled substance and drink alcohol. That is a complete and total misuse of medication and can be lethal. Likewise, if you mix acetaminophen — the main ingredient in Tylenol — with alcohol, you could destroy your liver.

Obviously, the examples are not comprehensive and the number of examples one could think up could be endless.

When students choose to share or sell their own prescription medication, or when they use, buy, borrow, or steal someone else’s prescription medication, or if they misuse or abuse any prescription or over-the-counter medication it is not a matter of if, but rather when they will end up getting kicked out of school, admitted to an emergency room, locked up in jail, or hauled off to the morgue. Not if, but when.

How can all of this be prevented on your campus? It may never be possible to prevent every instance, but education is the key to reducing the number of instances and decreasing your campus’ risk of a tragic event. In my college talk, Sex, Drugs, & Red Bull™, I discuss how the bottles we choose — whether it is a bottle of medication, alcohol, or energy drink — all have consequences. The better our choices, the better our chances for success.

Giving students the information they need to make more informed choices before a sticky situation arises on campus not only saves lives, but also builds brighter, more successful futures. It’s a win – win for everyone!

To Your Success -

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

]]>http://chadsimpson.com/7-sins/feed/05-Minute Friendshttp://chadsimpson.com/5-minute-friends/
http://chadsimpson.com/5-minute-friends/#commentsSun, 25 Aug 2013 22:42:20 +0000chadhttp://chadsimpson.com/?p=852What in the world is a 5-minute friend?

A 5-minute friend is someone who is closer to you than an acquaintance, but not necessarily as close as say, your BFF. It’s someone who brightens your soul, but not someone you routinely see. However, when you do run into your 5-minute friends (maybe in a restaurant, a lobby somewhere, or even just on Facebook), they always stop and make the time to catch up with you and spend about five minutes visiting with you to see what’s going on in your world (unlike an acquaintance with whom you simply share a simple smile and a courteous “hello”).

Thanks to technology, we live in a socially connected world — a world our great-grandparents would find foreign. Over the years, we’ve gone from having only acquaintances, friends, and best friends to having many types of friends across a very blurry and broad spectrum.

With 5-minute friends, there is a deeper, albeit not necessarily spoken, connection. At the risk of sounding a little “wooey – wooey”, these are the people with whom your soul truly connects and resonates. They light up your life, but for whatever reason (good or bad), neither of you has taken the connection to a deeper friendship — and that’s okay! We need 5-minute friends in our life. They bring us a positive, uplifting, and energizing experience to the crazy, chaotic worlds in which we live.

A couple of years ago, I was attending a seminar in Houston, Texas, when I decided to take a break and check out what was happening on Facebook. I was shocked to see that a “friend” of mine had died quite unexpectedly. He was in his early thirties and I was perplexed at how this could have happened to someone who was so seemingly healthy and vibrant. I was stunned and overwhelmed. Then, in an instant, it hit me like a ton of bricks — why was this guy’s death having such an impact on me? After all, neither of us had made an effort to connect more than visiting for 5-minutes here and there when our paths crossed. Why was the death of an acquaintance tugging at my soul? The answer is simple: because he felt like much more than an acquaintance based on my few encounters with him (truthfully, we only ever interacted maybe a dozen times).

That’s when I realized that some of the people I normally would have thought of as acquaintances were actually closer to me than I previously thought. Thus, the 5-Minute Friend.

Life is short and our only real task is to love each other … to build and foster connections. Today, I challenge you to seek out your 5-minute friend and catch up with them. You’ll feel better for having done so!

Be well -

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

I was visiting with a friend a while back who loves The Dr. Phil Show. Personally, I like Dr. Phil just fine and think his advice is pretty solid. I mean come on … he is Dr. Phil. However, I usually find shows like that quite frustrating . When I shared my thoughts with my friend, I told him that I feel like virtually everyone on the show could solve most of their problems using just three simple strategies. Intrigued, he said, “Go on …”

Strategy #1 – Make Up Your Mind to Change Your Mind

Most of our problems are a result of us not wanting to change, or holding on to a belief for no good reason. When you make up your mind to change your mind about the problem in front of you, you are well on your way to solving the problem. Examples: If a class I’m taking it totally stressing me out, then I would decide that no matter what, I’m going to have fun in that class. I made up my mind to change my mind about the class. Additionally, if I have to be in the same social or professional circles as someone who drives me up the wall, I could decide to accept them as they are — knowing that I cannot change anyone but myself — and embrace their personality when I have to be around them. I’ve made up my mind to change MY mind about them and the situation.

Strategy #2 – Take Positive Action

Often our problems arise because of our inaction. The best way out of them is to take positive action toward resolving the problem. Examples: If I have a project due soon, I’m going to feel better about it if I take some type of action toward completing it. If want to open my own business, I have to take action. I can’t just sit around all day hoping and dreaming. I have to do something to build the business. This is one that I hear all the time: I wish I had more money. However, the person is rarely doing anything to change their level of income! You have to take positive action to accomplish the things you want in life.

Strategy #3 – Be Happy!

If you want to be happy, then BE! Our choices in life will dictate our circumstances. If we allow our circumstances to dictate our choice to be happy, we are operating in reverse and will never move forward. The better our choices, the better our chances of success. Being happy is all about making up your mind to change your mind from not happy to happy. Example: I’m not happy that I have to get up and go to work on Monday morning. Wouldn’t it just be easier to decide to be happy about having a job and to focus on the positive aspects of the job — or, go to Strategy #2 and find a new job? This is not to say that happy people have fewer problems, but happy people most definitely handle their problems with less stress. And … less stress makes for much better problem solving.

At the end of the day, almost everything comes down to how we think, the action we take, and the decision to be happy with the life we have (and if you are not happy with the life you have, change the way you are thinking about it, take some action, and be happy!).

To your success -

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

]]>http://chadsimpson.com/3-strategies-for-solving-most-of-your-problems/feed/07 Reasons College Is the Right Choicehttp://chadsimpson.com/college-is-the-right-choice/
http://chadsimpson.com/college-is-the-right-choice/#commentsMon, 10 Jun 2013 02:26:12 +0000chadhttp://chadsimpson.com/?p=843Is College Right for You? Yes. Uh-huh. And, probably.

Of course, I am biased. I’m a college graduate, so I see this from the perspective of someone who has been there and done that. Additionally, I’ve taught at a college. I’m on an advisory board for a college, and a portion of my income comes from me speaking at colleges. So how could I possibly be objective in this discussion? Maybe I can’t, but I can make a good case for why college will benefit you.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room. Is it absolutely necessary to attend college to be successful in life? No, but attending college is certainly not going to hurt your opportunity for success. In fact, it will likely help to improve your chances significantly. Plain and simple: the odds lean in your favor when you attend college and earn your degree. Elephant #2: What if I don’t actually end up “using” my degree? So what! There is nothing wasteful about gaining knowledge for the simple sake of knowledge. Even if you go on to do something with your life that doesn’t utilize the specific degree you earned, it is still beneficial. I have a cousin with a history degree and he works in the banking industry. My best friend has a computer science degree with a minor in business. He lasted a year in the computer world and couldn’t stand it. Now he owns a lawn and landscape business and is crazy successful. Neither would likely be where they are now without their degrees.

7 Reasons College Is the Right Choice

1. The Education

The most obvious reason is that you’ll receive a quality education from attending college. It’s such an obvious reason that I almost didn’t list it. However, think about it for a minute. Attending college gives you the opportunity to study topics that actually interest you — unlike all of your schooling up to this point, which was designed to teach you what you need to know instead of what you want to know. In college, you can discuss and debate your favorite topics with professors and other students in an academic forum designed to ignite your desire for learning. Pretty cool stuff, but you have to attend to participate.

2. The Connections

The people you meet in college — faculty, staff, and fellow students — will be in your life forever. Seriously … especially in the digital age in which we live. You’ll make lasting friendships. You’ll forge professional relationships and, perhaps, even fall in love with the person of your dreams. No matter what types of relationships you build, the number of strong connections you make in college can help determine your path to success. Connections are so important, in fact, that I discuss them at length in a talk I do called, The Prescription for Success™. Building a strong network of connections is so important in life, I would say this alone is reason enough to attend college.

3. The Character Building

College life — just like “the real world” — is filled with ups and downs. It presents the perfect opportunity to build or refine your character. I had a college roommate in Pharmacy School who, in my opinion, was royally mistreated by one of his professors. It’s a long story (I’ll save the details for a separate blog post), but the short version is that my friend had to take this one class three different times — mostly because the professor was overly zealous in exerting his power (in my opinion). The point, however, is that this event was a character building opportunity for my friend. Whether with professors, fellow students, or friends, college affords a lot of different types of opportunities to build the kind of character we all need to deal with difficult situations throughout life.

4. The Life Skills

Attending college is like one stop shopping to help build, bolster, and refine many of the basic life skills we need to succeed. You’ll improve upon things like (not an all encompassing list … not even by a long shot):

- Getting to places on time
- Working with a team of people
- Working on projects
- Meeting deadlines
- Interpersonal communication skills
- Leadership skills
- Task management
- Good old fashioned “stick-to-it-ness”

5. The Social Equity

Colleges have this thing called “student life”. You pay for it in your registration whether you partake in it or not. My advice: PARTAKE to the max! I’ll explain why in a minute. First, what is it? Student life differs from campus to campus but mostly encompasses things like:

- Entertainment: Your campus will bring in musicians, comedians, contortionists, poets, artists, and other types of novelty acts. Sometimes it is throughout the semester and sometimes it is for a special festival or campus-wide event. A lot of these entertainers are ah-mazing … definitely worth seeing! Be sure you take a photo with them and get their autograph. Who knows, you might be meeting a future star!

- Seminars: Why on Earth would you want to attend even more lectures than what you already have to attend for your classes? Because these are the “cool” lectures. This is where you can learn some really fun, interesting, and sometimes bizarre stuff that they don’t ever teach you in class. For example, my signature college talk that I do on campuses is called Sex, Drugs, & Red Bull™. It’s highly engaging and very entertaining, and it delivers a powerful lesson. You leave with a lot more knowledge, but without feeling like you just sat through a snoozer of a lecture. There is no way you’d get to see all the stuff I show you in my lecture from a standard college course. Other great lecture topics you’ll see on campuses include: leadership, diversity, success, etc… Never miss out on attending the lectures your college brings in for you. You’ll always walk away with a slight edge over those who didn’t attend, and that slight edge is often all it takes to succeed!

- Student government: Boring, right? No! I was actually in student government when I attended college and I had a blast. I made lots of friends and connections that have been beneficial for me even to this day. If leadership is your thing, I would strongly suggest getting involved in your Student Government Association. You’ll be involved in key decisions that will shape the future of your school. The knowledge you gain will be beneficial for the rest of your life!

Why should you participate in these activities? It builds something I call, Social Equity. These are the types of activities where you make new friends and strengthen your connections with your existing friends. It helps build your network of connections. In addition to building social equity, you are also having fun — a fast remedy for relieving stress (which is prevalent on campuses nationwide). Stress is the number one reason for bad grades, so getting involved in Student Life could actually help you academically. It’s a win-win!

6. The Opening of Doors

College degrees open doors and set you apart from your competition. If two people apply for the same job and one has a college degree, I can almost guarantee you that the candidate with the college degree will have a better chance at getting the job. Degrees open doors, and you need doors opened if you want to improve your chances of success!

7. The Experience

One of the biggest benefits to attending college is almost indescribable. It’s really just “the experience” itself. It’s like the first time you visited Disney and it really was cooler than you even imagined. Better yet, it’s like the first time you went to Las Vegas and all of your friends who had already been told you to be sure to check out the fountains at the Bellagio. You thought: Fountains? Seriously? But you went anyway, and when those fountains started up … well, it was a magical experience. That’s kind of the same with college. It’s hard to explain, but it’s an experience that you should jump at the opportunity to take advantage of if it’s at all possible for you.

To Your Success!

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

Sex, Drugs, & Red Bull™ is an edgy, engaging, and entertaining program that shows you how to overcome the headgame hurdles that block our health, happiness, and ultimately our path to living life On Top of The World. Its philosophy simplifies the complexity of our choices. Sex, Drugs, & Red Bull™ is the course we never had in school about choices, consequences, and how the two are interwoven to pave or derail our path to success. The program offers strategies that can be implemented the minute you leave the talk … strategies that will skyrocket you to living life on top of the world. The choices we make and the action we take determine the life we create. When we improve our choices, we improve our chances for enhanced health, happiness, and success.

Ready. Set. Go.

The program begins with the basics: Exploring our obsession with chemically stimulated living — our true chemical romance. In today’s world, we have a bottle filled with some sort of “chemical” to help us wake up, stay awake, study harder, play the field, play on the field, and even hit the hay at night. Remember the old advertisement that said, “We’ve got an app for that”? Well, instead of an app, we’ve got a bottle for that! From the bedroom to the boardroom and from the dorm room, to the classroom, and even into the locker room, we’ve got a bottle for each of life’s circumstances.

Energy drinks. Alcohol. Medications. And more.

From there, I look at the most common bottles each of us use every day, yet this is not a substance abuse lecture … far from it, in fact (leave the substance abuse for the Dr. Drews of the world). You’ll find none of the “thou shalt nots …” so often hurled toward you in an effort to force feed you an opinion — or worse: to sell you another bottle that promises to help you succeed. I’m not here to make up your mind for you. My mission is to deliver the information you want in an edgy, engaging, and entertaining forum. You make up your own mind about what is right for you.

Living Bigger Than A Bottle …

As the program moves forward, you’ll gain a solid foundation to help make more informed choices, to overcome the headgame hurdles holding you back, and you’ll gain solid strategies to give you all the energy, all the success, and even better health while no longer feeling mandated to reach for some kind of bottle to get these same benefits. I call this Living Bigger Than A Bottle … the core philosophy of Sex, Drugs, & Red Bull™.

Zig Ziglar is well know for his “automobile university” comments in many of his talks. Zig’s idea is that you listen to self improvement, business building, motivational, or spiritual types of lectures on CDs while you are driving your vehicle each day. I loved the idea the first time I heard it, but the truth is that I don’t really spend a lot of time in my car! In fact, I’m probably not in the car on most days for more than a few little bursts at a time here and there, so automobile university is not something that would work well for me. It would probably take me over a week to get through just one CD!

However, I do take an hour long walk almost every day, so I just load up my iPod with lectures that interest me and off I go! I guess you could call it “walking university.” Some days, I learn a ton of great information. Other days, I just learn bits and pieces. No matter what, I always learn something and finish my walk totally pumped up and jazzed to live life to its fullest and to take my business to the next level!

Today was different. The lecturer seemed polite and even somewhat knowledgeable about her industry, but everything she said was just so sour and such a downer. Gloom and doom this. Gloom and doom that. Unfortunately, this went on for a full hour … the length of my entire walk!

Some might say she was just being realistic, but I think a lot of people use “being realistic” as a shield for their own negative mindset. I like what the actor, Will Smith, says about being realistic, “Being realistic is the most commonly travelled road to mediocrity.”

As the “Debbie Downer” on my iPod was finishing up her discussion today while my walk was coming to an end, I saw two bright, shiny pennies on the pavement and picked them up. It was like God, the universe, and all my angels conspired to shout out at me saying, “Chad, don’t let this one opinion get you down. Think of the hundreds (if not thousands) of others who are giving a message that is 180 degrees opposite of her beliefs about business. Keep on keeping on … this is just her two cents.”

Just her two cents. Remember that the next time someone says something that could easily derail you from your mission. It’s just their two cents!

To your success -

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

Research in The Journal of Pain shows that dropping the F-bomb when you hurt yourself may actually be beneficial at helping ease the pain.

According to the authors, using a swear word seems to activate deeper parts of the brain more associated with emotions.

For those of you who swear more frequently throughout a typical day, using a swear word is less likely to help when you feel pain.

Be well …

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

Dr. Carol Huser, a Colorado medical examiner in La Plata County, stated the death of 5-year-old Kimber Michelle Brown was the result of a combination of two over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold medications, dextromethorphan (the active ingredient in OTC cough medications like Robitussin-DM) and an antihistamine, cetirazine (the active ingredient in the allergy medication, Zyrtec).

The child, who had toxic levels of the medications in her system at the time of her death, had been staying with her grandmother. It is uncertain if the grandmother administered too much medication to the child, or if the 5-year-old took doses without the grandmother’s knowledge. News reports indicate the medication was sitting on a counter in reach of the child.

This story is heartbreaking and my sympathies go out to the family of this child. Sadly, however, it’s not surprising since we know that 100,000 people die each year as a result of accidental overdoses or errors in the administration of medication. Based on information from the medical examiner’s office, it appears Kimber is now part of that statistic.

Events like this are exactly why I do my talk, Sex, Drugs & Red Bull™. Each and every day students, parents, celebrities, neighbors, coworkers, friends, relatives, and even children are injured or die as a result of a medication or other substance.

One of the critical pieces of information I discuss in my program is that we have become exceedingly comfortable with OTC medications. In my talk, I ask audiences which of these groups of drugs is the dangerous group: OTC, Prescription, or Illegal Drugs. I often see more hands raised for the “illegal drug,” but the truth is that they all can be dangerous. Because over the counter medications do not require a prescription from a physician we have a false sense of security about using them; however, they can be just as harmful — or lethal, as in this case — as prescription medications.

Is this Preventable?

Yes. A few tips to help keep you and your family safe when taking over the counter medications:

- Check with a pharmacist to make sure the medication you are purchasing is the appropriate choice for the person who will be taking it

-Ask your pharmacist to tell you exactly how much of the medication to take and how often to take it

- For liquid medications, use a measuring device (such as an oral syringe) instead of a kitchen spoon

- Ask your pharmacist about side effects and what to do if you have any side effects

- Ask your pharmacist what to do if you take too much medication, or call Poison Control (or 9-1-1) should you find yourself in that situation

- Never allow children to administer medications to themselves

- Keep all medications out of the reach of children

- Keep a log of the date and time medication is administered to prevent taking a dose too soon

Medications are like a weapon. Used appropriately and they can save your life. However, when they are misused they can be lethal.

Be well …

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

]]>http://chadsimpson.com/5-year-old-dies-from-medication/feed/0Seriously? Breathable Caffeine?http://chadsimpson.com/seriously-breathable-caffeine/
http://chadsimpson.com/seriously-breathable-caffeine/#commentsWed, 21 Mar 2012 00:46:23 +0000chadhttp://chadsimpson.com/?p=697AeroShot is an inhaler type of device that delivers a shot of caffeine that you “draw into your mouth and swallow,” according to the website for Breathable Foods — the company that makes AeroShot.

This product confounds me on a lot of levels, so let’s break it down:

- The name of the company is an oxymoron to me. Breathable Foods. Huh? A food, by definition, implies the need for digestion — which takes place in the digestive tract. The word “breathable” implies respiration — which takes place in the respiratory tract. The body was designed such that neither tract would ever meet the other thanks to a little flap called the epiglottis. In the world of healthcare when someone “breathes food”, we implement the Heimlich maneuver because breathing food results in choking. Our bodies were not designed to breathe food. We were designed to eat food.

- Again, I don’t understand the name of the company: Breathable Foods. The company website states, “Pull the yellow end to open, put the other end in your mouth, gently draw the powder into your mouth, and swallow. Push closed.” So, really, you just suck the powder into your mouth and swallow. No breathing. No inhalation. Just suck and swallow. I guess the name Suckable Foods doesn’t have the same appeal.

- Those of you who have attended one of my talks and have seen me speak about caffeine know that I’m not anti-caffeine. You also know that it’s easy to overdo the amount of caffeine we consume because we get so much from a multitude of sources (tea, coffee, soda, energy drinks, etc…). The AeroShot manufacturer states each shot contains 100 mg caffeine — approximately the amount in a large cup of coffee. When we consume excessive amounts of caffeine, our bodies can experience everything from irritability, nervousness, heart palpitations and seizures to sudden death.

- Michael W. Roosevelt, acting director in the office of compliance at the FDA, recently issued a warning letter to Breathable Foods regarding their AeroShot caffeine product. The letter states, “Your labeling is false and misleading because your product cannot be intended for both inhalation and ingestion.” Hmm. The FDA does not appear to be impressed.

While I’m not against caffeine, I am against the misuse and abuse of caffeine. My concerns — for now — are as follows:

- I’m concerned that the AeroShot will make its way into the club, party, and college scene and be consumed in tandem with alcohol. The problem with drinking alcohol and caffeine together is that the caffeine “fakes out” your brain and makes you think you are not as intoxicated as you actually are. The “buzz” sensation you get when you drink alcohol alone acts like a warning system for lots of people who drink alcohol. It lets people know they’ve had too much and that they need to stop drinking. The buzz sensation is significantly delayed — or even missing — with the consumption of alcohol and caffeine together … resulting in far riskier behaviors than you would normally engage in had you left the caffeine out of the equation. In addition to the brain fake out, the combination of caffeine and alcohol can also result in blackouts and other dangerous medical complications.

- I’m concerned that people will begin to use AeroShot in addition to other caffeine containing products they already use. This combination could quickly lead to overconsumption of caffeine which can result in serious health concerns.

- I’m not fond of the delivery mechanism — the shotgun-shell-looking-lipstick-sized-inhaler-type thing. The design seems like it would be way too easy for someone to actually breathe AeroShot’s caffeine formulation into their lungs — which would be potentially harmful and could result in a bronchospasm which could even lead to death. Compounding the likelihood of someone mistakenly inhaling the powder is the manufacturer’s name: BREATHABLE Foods.

- Breathable Foods’ website suggests the use of AeroShot for athletes. During intense workouts, our heart rate increases. Caffeine also increases our heart rate. In my opinion, athletes should avoid the use caffeine during practices and during games.

- Breathable Foods’ website suggests no more than three AeroShots per day. That’s 300 mg of caffeine! We can start to see medical complications in people who consume more than 250 mg in a day, so three AeroShots seems like way too much in my opinion. I would not recommend consuming more than one AeroShot in a 24-hour period, so that the cumulative dose of caffeine from all other caffeine sources doesn’t put you anywhere close to the 250 mg zone.

7 key points to remember …

1. Do NOT party with AeroShot
2. Do NOT use AeroShot with alcohol
3. Do NOT use AeroShot with other caffeine containing products (i.e. energy drinks)
4. Do NOT breathe AeroShot into your lungs
5. Do NOT use AeroShot if you are under 18 years of age
6. Do NOT consume more than one AeroShot per day
7. Do NOT exercise or play sports after consuming AeroShot

There are plenty of other highly effective, medication free (yes, caffeine is a medication), and side effect free strategies to achieve increased energy levels without using caffeine, including my Zone 1530 program.

If you choose to use AeroShot, use extreme caution and use at your own risk.

I’m not the Caffeine Nazi. In fact, I’m no different from most of you. I drink tea or coffee almost every day, and just like many of you, I’ve even “earned” my Starbucks Gold Card. Plenty of us love our caffeine and are living life on the edge, but remember that it takes very little to send us over the edge and to an early grave. While there is a big difference between living on the edge and going over the edge, only a fine line separates the two.

The bottom line is simple: I’m not a fan of AeroShot.

Be well,

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.

As I’m sitting here in my study on this beautiful Saturday morning drinking my tea, I was thinking about a decision I made this week. I even alluded to it in a recent Facebook post! Many years ago — in fact, it almost feels like a lifetime ago, I would have obsessed about whether I had made the right decision or not, but that’s not how I am now. Today, I am confident — and even a little happy — about the decision I made!

One of the strategies I share in my Stress Less Blueprint program is about decision making. Sometimes making decisions can be tough, but it’s all the worry we create about having to live with the decisions we’ve made that ends up gnawing at us after the fact. Well, I’ve got great news for you: It doesn’t have to be that way!

Today, I want to share with you a brief summary of one of the strategies from my Stress Less Blueprint …

One of the most important skills to further develop is your ability to hear that still, small, inner voice that resides deep within each of us. Some call it the voice of God. Others call it your gut instinct. It’s been referred to as the voice of Spirit, Angels, Source, and the Universe. Some even call it each of those names depending on the situation! For the purpose of this lesson, I’ll just stick with “gut instinct.”

Learning to listen to my gut instinct is one of the most important skills I’ve mastered in my life and when I listen to it, things have this strange tendency to work out beautifully. I think “listening” to your gut instinct is really more about “feeling” than actually hearing something audibly. For example: You are driving home from the grocery store following the same path you’ve taken for years and today — for some unknown reason — you decide to take a different path. You just listened to your gut instinct. You might ask, “What would have happened if I’d taken my normal route home that day?” The answer is simple: Who knows and who cares? The point is learning to follow your gut instinct.

Years ago I was supposed to fly to Kentucky for a business meeting. About two weeks before I was supposed to go, I had a very strong “feeling” that I should not go … nothing concrete — just a feeling. I mustered up the courage to go tell my boss that I couldn’t go. Fortunately, he knew me pretty well and knew that I based all my decisions off my gut instinct. So, he looked at me and asked, “Gut instinct?” I said, “Yup!” That was the end of the conversation and nothing more was said about it because he had learned over the years how reliable my gut instinct had been. So, even he trusted my intuition! When I share this story, most people jump straight ahead and ask, “Well what happened on the trip?” Again, the answer is simple: Who knows and who cares? For whatever reason, I wasn’t supposed to be there and that’s all that mattered.

I think that still, small, often whisper quiet, inner voice — gut instinct — knows things that have not yet been revealed to my conscious mind. That’s why I say, “Who knows and who cares?” I don’t have to know the “why” or understand the details. I simply trust in my gut instinct and allow my life to unfold in it’s natural state of less stress.

The next time you have to make a decision — big or small, I encourage you to try following where your gut instinct leads you.

To Your Success -

Chad Simpson, RPh
The Pharmacist Guy™

The opinions and information provided by Chad Simpson are for informational purposes only and are not intended to treat, diagnose, or render medical advice. They are not a substitute for medical advice or treatment from your physician or health care practitioner. Never start, stop, or make changes to your medication or health care regimen without first checking with your physician.